My Neighbour Castiel
by Laura JN
Summary: A crossover with Supernatural and My Neighbour Totoro. Castiel is of course, the friendly man in the church in the forest next to the Winchester family's new home. Their mother is in hospital with an illness and John is working hard as a car mechanic. The boys are young, and are about to make many new friends, particularly with the strange creatures made of feathers.


**My Neighbour Castiel**

The Winchester family were driving down the long country road with their belongings piled up on top of the Impala, tied down haphazardly with rope, and the two boys peering out of the windows. Dean leaned out to get a better look at the land around them, and took in a deep breath of the fresh air. They had moved away from the city for their mother's health: She was suffering from an illness in a nearby hospital, so John had found an old house right by the forest for them to live in. Dean grinned, as Sam joined him at the window,

"Careful boys" John called to them from the driver's seat, "Its just a little further"

"Yes Sir!" Dean answered, but kept leaning out of the window. Sam grinned then, and they both made noises of delight at the vast green landscape. The boys could see a tiny stream that ran under a bridge, as they drove over it, and towards the forest. The locals waved as they drove by, spotting the luggage and the new faces. The boys liked the look of the place already, waving back to the smiling people in greeting, and grinning even harder.

When they arrived at the new house, Dean flung the car door open, and jumped outside, followed shortly by Sam, who hopped into the nearest puddle. Thankfully he had boots on,

"Come on Sammy, lets go look at the house!" Dean called to his younger brother, who had already managed to find something interesting in the grass. "What's that you've got?" He asked,

"Fever!" Sam held up the delicate thing in his tiny hands, "t's a fever!" He smiled proudly up at Dean,

"Oh you found a feather, wait... It's gone." Dean scrunched up his eyes, peering at Sam's hands. The feather, which had been in plain sight before, had vanished without them noticing. "You must have dropped it. Come on lets go look inside!" Dean grabbed his brother's hand, tugging lightly,

"I didn't dwop it.." Sam pouted, pulling the grumpiest face he could muster, before stomping after his brother. The house was old and rotting, but the foundation and main structure were still safe. The boys took it in turns pushing at one of the pillars holding up the porch roof, laughing as it cracked and heaved. When it sounded like it was about to give way, they let go, and ran inside.

After tearing through the house, they bumped into an older man. Sam rushed to hide behind Dean. Who was this? Just then, John walked into the hallway, to see his two boys looking befuddled before the stranger,

"Boys, this is Bobby, he'll be taking care of you while I'm at work. He's a good friend of mine, so be nice." John smiled. The boys nodded, though Sam was still clinging onto Dean's shirt for comfort. Dean held out a hand to Bobby, who took it, and gave it a light squeeze and shake.

"Have you boys found any dust bunnies yet? This place is crawling with the things." The boys shook their heads, before looking at each other, and heading off to search the house for them.

Not sure exactly what a dust bunny looked like, but unwilling to let Sam know this, Dean took the lead, heading upstairs with a flash light. He held it over his arm, mimicking the cops on TV, and shined it around in front of him. When he reached the top of the stairs, and shone the torch in the corner, something black moved, and scattered out of sight. The two boys ran over to where it had been, laughing. Dean just caught sight of the feathers disappearing,

"That was no dust bunny..." He commented, but shrugged it off. Sam seemed happy enough, though a little startled. Dean walked over to open the window, and let some light into the room,

"Look Sammy, the room is empty, see?" He smiled. Sam looked relieved. Out of the window they could see more of the forest.

"Chuwch!" Sam squeeled, "We live near a chuwch!"

"Yes Sammy its a church." Dean rolled his eyes, but was glad that Sam was enjoying the view. Things were looking hopeful.

The following morning, Dean went to help Bobby fetch water from the well for washing their clothes, while Sam played in the garden. Dean was just walking back inside to collect the washing from the machine, when he noticed someone was standing hesitantly by the doorway,

"What can I do for you?" Dean asked politely,

"From Mother, for Bobby." The young girl announced,

"What is it?" Dean asked, eyeing up the basket in her hands,

"Here." She shoved it towards him "Here!" Dean took it from her carefully, before she stepped back outside,

"Wait, what is this?" Dean frowned, as Bobby walked in to see what was happening,

"Is that Jo?" Bobby asked,

"HAA-H-H-H! Your house is haunted!" The girl teased, and stuck her tongue out, before running away.

"JOANNABETH!" Bobby shouted after the naughty child.

A while later, the family were eating lunch with Bobby, enjoying the sandwiches that he had made for them. Dean had been explaining what had happened to John,

"Ha, ha, ha! reminds me of when I was a boy." He laughed, reminiscing,

"I hate girls!" Dean replied grumpily. John gave him a knowing look, which said that this would not last long.

That night there was a great storm, that shook the trees and rattled the windows. After Dean had brought in the washing, the family bathed together, while John reassured the boys that there was nothing to be afraid of, even if the house did appear to be haunted.

The next day passed slowly to begin with, as they set out to visit the boy's mother in the hospital. On the way they passed Jo, who stuck her tongue out at Dean, who did the same back.

When they reached the hospital, the boys began telling their mother all about the new house, and how it had strange ghosts with feathers,

"Mommy do you like haunted houses?" Sam asked her,

"Of course! I've got to hurry and get well, I'd love to meet a ghost. Particularly one with feathers." She smiled at her boy's innocent story. "Sam is Dean looking after you?" The young boy nodded, hugging his mother around the knee. She ran a hand through both of her son's hair, before ruffling it up. Dean had missed the feeling of his mother's presence so much, and he was becoming more concerned about her health, beginning to understand how serious this illness might be. Her smile was warm and comforting though, and her hand in his hair felt good and familiar.

The next day Dean was rushing to make packed lunches for him and Sam, when a boy called him over,

"On my way!" Dean called,

"You made a new friend already?" John asked,

"He's called, Garth." Dean smiled, before running out to meet the scrawny child,

"Take care!" Sam and John called after him.

Soon after Dean had left, Sam went out to play in the garden, taking his lunch box with him. He began collecting acorns in a bucket, before glimpsing sight of something moving in the grass. He hurriedly chased it towards the porch, where it was joined by something similar, yet a little larger in size. They both looked like tiny angels, unable to fly. The smallest was covered completely in dark, downy feathers, while the larger one's face was visible through the soft brown hairs. Sam giggled, and chases them towards the forest. He found himself in a tiny tunnel in the undergrowth, hesitated, before following it, running fast, but being careful not to trip. He lost sight of the strange creatures, but quickly decided to continue in the direction they had been heading in. He climbed over large tree roots, and around the side of a thick trunk, until he stood before a large church. Was this the church they had spotted from the attic back in the house? Curiosity possessed the boy, and so he wandered around the side of the building, until he found the back door. He pushed it open carefully, causing it to creak heavily.

Sam took in a deep breath, before striding into the room. Inside he could see light shining down through the high stained glass windows. There was a large portrait of an angel painted in mosaic form at the back of the church, near the arched roof. In front of the alter, knelt a tall man dressed in a trench coat, with hair the same colour as the creature's feathers. Was he an angel?

"Who awe you? A giant dust bunny?" Sam asked, waddling over to the man. The man turned slowly to gaze down at him with brilliant blue eyes,

"Castiel." He answered in a deep, gravelly voice.

"Cas-ti-el. You're Castiel." Sam repeated, testing the man's name on his tongue. The boy grinned happily up at the man, who looked a little confused. Sam pulled up a cushion, and knelt down next to the angel, before falling asleep.

When Dean returned from school, Sam was nowhere to be found. He went in search of his father instead,

"Dad, have you seen Sammy?" He asked when he found John in his office,

"No? Is he not in the garden?" Dean shook his head. The two of them headed outside, and began calling Sam's name. "I'm sure he hasn't gone far." John assured the boy. After a while of searching, Dean found Sam's jacket by the bushes that lined the garden. Kneeling down, he could see a tiny tunnel in front of him. He called his father over, before beginning to crawl through. He found Sam sleeping, all curled up in a bundle in the tiny grove under the bushes.

"Sammy? Sammy wake up!" Dean shook the boy. Sleepily, Sam rubbed his eyes, "Sammy you can't sleep in a place like this!"

"Where's Castiel?" Sam asked, a little confused.

"Castiel?" Dean looked at his brother, concerned, "Were you dreaming?"

"Castiel was here." Sam insisted. "He had fevers."

"Feathers? You mean like the ones we saw in the house? He must be the ghost."

"He was in the church, just through here." Sam explained, running back down the tunnel. He appeared moments later in their garden. Frowning, he ran back the other way, only to appear a short distance away, at the same spot in their garden. Frustrated, he began to fume, while Dean and John were left standing confused in front of the bushes,

"Perhaps we should go and offer him a proper greeting." John suggested, and with that, the family walked down to the road, to approach the church through the front entrance. John carried Sam up the steps, while Dean walked beside them, half hoping to meet Castiel, and half believing that Sam had simply been having a dream. They entered the church, and paid their respects at the alter. Sam looked unhappy,

"He was right here." He frowned.

"Well you can't see him all the time." John smiled.

"Do you think we'll see him again?" Sam asked, looking up at his father with wide eyes, full of hope and a desire to introduce Castiel to his family. John nodded.

When the evening came, Dean began composing a letter to his mother. He told her about school, and Garth, and about Castiel. He wrote that he secretly hoped to meet him too.


End file.
